Media and Technology Once-upon-a-time, long before blogging software became synonymous with digital publishing, a core ethic of those who blogged was "show the reader when you change an article." The resulting full disclosure was a boon to readers. Two recent incidents from the MSM illustrate why I think news organizations should rethink their publishing policy and … [Read more...] about News Orgs Need To Model Blogger Ethics
Enter Obama 2.0
As the GOP plods through its revival of last century’s Absurdist masterpiece, “Waiting for Godot,” (Christie, Palin, whoever), there are reminders that Americans have an actual president trying to govern in the real world. In his Weekly Address, Barack Obama says, “It’s been almost three weeks since I sent the American Jobs Act to Congress--three weeks since I sent them a … [Read more...] about Enter Obama 2.0
Have Barack Obama’s Policies Become Secondary To His Force Of Personality?
I can recall only three presidents in the last 75 years whose force of personality -- charisma and all that -- was so powerful that it was their most effective governing tool. They would be Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan and, of course, Barack Obama. This tool, however, can be a double-edged sword. While all three presidents were able to accomplish a great deal, in … [Read more...] about Have Barack Obama’s Policies Become Secondary To His Force Of Personality?
Warts and All, ‘No Tolerance’ Policing Has Made America Much Less Segregated (Die Zeit, Germany)
Is America's 'No Tolerance' approach to battling crime something for Europe and the rest of the world to emulate? According to Die Zeit columnist Dr. Eva Schweitzer, this may seem counter-intuitive and disturbing to European sensibilities, but cracking down on grand and petty crimes committed primarily by ethnic minorities is the very 'glue' that hold America's multicultural … [Read more...] about Warts and All, ‘No Tolerance’ Policing Has Made America Much Less Segregated (Die Zeit, Germany)
Can the Left Stage a Tea Party?
WASHINGTON -- Why hasn't there been a tea party on the left? And can President Obama and the American left develop a functional relationship? That those two questions are not asked very often is a sign of how much of the nation's political energy has been monopolized by the right from the beginning of Obama's term. This has skewed media coverage of almost every issue, … [Read more...] about Can the Left Stage a Tea Party?
Prom-Queen Anguish (Guest Voice)
Prom-Queen Anguish by Will Durst It's human nature. We mostly want what we can't have. Grass is greener. The romantic lure of the unattainable. Knowledge that high school girls have long-since weaponized. Nothing entices a hormonally imbalanced freshman like flouncing down a crowded hall, laughing through a gaggle of friends with a flip of the pony-tail and nary a backwards … [Read more...] about Prom-Queen Anguish (Guest Voice)
Incoming Slippers
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Incoming Slippers
Perry’s N-word Problem
It's about Texas, after all, where even wildflowers have names no longer acceptable in contemporary America. The elderly in Texas still call one of the many cone flowers "niggerheads." Look into the Texas Almanac and you'll find equal-opportunity insults built into most wildflowers' names. This isn't just a Texas problem -- these names proliferate across America. … [Read more...] about Perry’s N-word Problem
The Crime of Punishment: More From Caplan on Stuntz
Lincoln Caplan's full review of The Collapse of American Criminal Justice By William Stuntz is an absolute must read. Caplan calls the book brave and contrarian, utopian and powerful. You will remember I quoted a snippet earlier in the week. It's stuck with me; let's go back for more. Caplan explains that Stuntz believed too much discretion has led to the misrule of law and … [Read more...] about The Crime of Punishment: More From Caplan on Stuntz
The al-Awlaki Killing: Cheney’s Words vs. Obama’s Actions (UPDATES)
The one-word-man deviated from his standard one-word script this morning on CNN’s State of the Union when discussing the recent drone strike that killed American-born terrorist Anwar al-Awlaki. But, first, credit where credit is due. Uncharacteristic as it is for him, Former Vice President Dick Cheney praised the U.S. drone strike that killed al-Awlaki and President Obama’s … [Read more...] about The al-Awlaki Killing: Cheney’s Words vs. Obama’s Actions (UPDATES)
It’s Looking Glass Time For Health Insurance.
It's that time of year again when folks have to try to figure out their health insurance plans for next year. I tell you, the Red Queen made more sense. … [Read more...] about It’s Looking Glass Time For Health Insurance.
Supporting Solar Power
I think there is a place for the government to support solar power but supporting supply, as in the case of Solyndra. is not the way to do it. The government should be encouraging demand. The most recent Energy Department loan guarantees are a step in the right direction. DOE said Friday it finalized a $1.24 billion loan guarantee to SunPower Corp. to help finance … [Read more...] about Supporting Solar Power
Who Needs Copy Machines Anymore?
A telling anecdote from Fred Wilson: With my phone in hand, I looked up at the young man helping me and said "can you make a photocopy of this page so I can take it home with me?" He looked straight at my phone and said "that has a camera in it, right?" I felt silly and chuckled. My friends who were with me laughed at me and the irony of the situation. I snapped a picture … [Read more...] about Who Needs Copy Machines Anymore?
Quote of the Day: “Class warfare. War on teachers. War on business. War in America?”
Our political Quote of the Day comes from a must-read-in-full column in The Christian Science Monitor titled "Class warfare. War on teachers. War on business. War in America?" by Jeremy Shapiro, psychologist and director of YouCutTheBudget.com. Here are a few chunks from it: It is a common observation that American political discourse has become rife with hyperbole and … [Read more...] about Quote of the Day: “Class warfare. War on teachers. War on business. War in America?”
Citizen Cain’s 999 Political Whopper
He is good at selling things, and now Herman Cain is outdoing his Burger King and Godfather Pizza triumphs by getting hungry GOP voters to order him up for the White House. From the bottom of the pack, Cain has surged to third in the national Fox poll at 17 percent, two points behind Rick Perry, after surprisingly eating the Texas governor’s lunch in a Florida straw poll … [Read more...] about Citizen Cain’s 999 Political Whopper
Definitely Not a Class Political Act
American politics has grown coarse, and ugly where name calling and swearing have somehow begun to impress some as intelligent. In fact, those who do politics this way probably should start a company selling lunch meats: Boorshead. Here's a prime example of an act that is notably unclassy, cheered on by some and apparently lucrative financially. Warrning adult language in this … [Read more...] about Definitely Not a Class Political Act
Arrest of 700 Brooklyn Bridge “Occupy Wall Street” Protesters: the Wave of the Future in Polarized America?
Is the United States inching back bit by bit to the 1960s, where demonstrations and counter demonstrations were all the rage (literally and figuratively)? It could be. First came the conservative Tea Party movement with the angry town hall meetings and demonstrations of summer-fall 2010, which impacted the 2010 elections. Now come signs that the country's left is toying with … [Read more...] about Arrest of 700 Brooklyn Bridge “Occupy Wall Street” Protesters: the Wave of the Future in Polarized America?
Prohibition Tonight
Set your DVRs. From the NYTimes review: Flappers in speakeasies and biddies beating temperance drums: hardly seems a recipe for modern-day relevance. Yet you can hear history talking directly to the Americans of 2011 all through “Prohibition,” an absorbing five-and-a-half-hour documentary by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick that runs for three nights, beginning on Sunday on PBS … [Read more...] about Prohibition Tonight
Supercommittee
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. … [Read more...] about Supercommittee
SNL Looks at The Internet “Comments Section” on Blogs and Websites
Saturday Night Live last night lampooed internet comments sections on weblogs and websites where people comment and say whatever pops into their heads using "pen names." Another case of satire saying something far more effectively than a zillion serious words: … [Read more...] about SNL Looks at The Internet “Comments Section” on Blogs and Websites